Divisible by Two
by lescribble
Summary: The subtlety of their love, makes me think about everything that happens in between. A collection of YohAnnaHana snapshots on a hundred-word limit, 200, 300, 400 and increasing.
1. Dinner Days

**Words: 200**

"Tadaima!" Yoh called to the household. He heard a small clatter in the kitchen and decided to trot toward the place. "Where's everyone?" he asked.

"They left" replied an expressionless Anna as she continued stirring the soup she was boiling.

"Mm." Yoh nodded, placing the vegetables he bought inside the refrigerator. "Ahh. Amidamaru said he'd go visit some friends" he offered.

Then he paused, gazing at the fire that slowly crackled in the stillness of their inn.

"Where's Tamao?"

"Pirika invited her over."

"You didn't go?" From the back, Yoh slipped his hands around her slim waist.

If anyone were watching, this would be the perfect time to hold their breaths and be ready for "The Slap".

But, no one was there.

And the slap never came.

"Obviously, I was cooking dinner, Yoh." She tasted the soup gingerly, still a little flushed at his boldness.

Yoh then leaned over and pressed his lips against hers.

His right hand slowly stroked her stomach and his left gently massaged her arm.

"Tastes nice" he whispered, promptly breaking off their kiss and heading to his room to change.

Anna's brow crinkled, wondering briefly if he meant the soup or her lips.

Or both.


	2. Perfect Fit

**Words: 300**

"Ne, Yoh." Manta said a bit hesitantly.

"Huh?" the other boy replied, not even bothering to look.

"Remind me again why we're here at a _lingerie store_?!" He asked shamefacedly, blushing profusely red as other women customers giggled.

"I told you, Anna asked me to buy her one of these" and he motioned at the rack in front of him, picking up a black lacy brassiere, examining it with care. "I forgot to hang the laundry... So she doesn't have any dry ones left."

Manta noted that Yoh didn't even flinch as he picked up the object. Marriage must make one incredibly mature.

But still, as the smaller boy looked around, he muttered "Uwaa, everyone is staring at us."

This time, Yoh looked up, noting the truth of those words. "Ah, but between their stares and Anna's glare, I'd really rather do her bidding and _be_ here."

Manta shuddered, that much he could understand and agree to.

"Besides," Yoh added, "this is expected, isn't it? Ever since we got married, I knew it would only be a matter of time until she asked me to do this too." He sighed.

"Red or black?"

~0~

"Sooo? Does it fit?"

Anna merely stared at the mirror, amazed at how perfect indeed the bra clung to her chest. "But... I never told him my cup size."

At this, Pirika laughed. "It's obvious isn't it?" Anna stared at her blankly.

"He's been staring at it too long, he now has a good estimation!"

"WHAT?!"

The girl pointed at Anna's boobs and made a squeezing motion with her hands, as if she were grasping something round. Chuckling before she stood up, she left the itako, aghast at this realization.

"YOH!!!" Anna screamed.

Yoh gulped. "B-but I was so sure! Was the cup size too small?"


	3. What and Why

**Words: 400**

_Maybe okaa-san knows this, because she's always reading._

_Or maybe otou-san does, he could have endured it in his battles._

As he trots toward the doorway, his father emerged, giving him that usual huge grin.

"Morning kiddo!" ruffling his hair in the process before proceeding to the kitchen.

He glanced to his right. As always, his beautiful okaa-san was placidly leafing through a magazine.

He blushed.

She looked up, motioning him to come with that gentle smile.

He blushed even more, shuffled his feet and pursed his lips.

He glanced to his left; a steady sound of chopping could be heard as his father cooked.

He breathed.

_There's no other way to say it…_

"O...Okaa-san?"

"Yes Hana?"

"What is a blow job?"

"OUCH--" He glanced at his father, who seemed to have cut his finger and back at his mother, who seemed to have had a twitching brow.

"Pardon dear?"

"Blow job. What's it?"

"..."

"..."

Anna blinked. "YOH!?!"

"Coming dear" came the steady reply of his otou-san. Rubbing his temples, he scooped Hana up in one motion.

He scratched his ear too. "Well...Hana...uhh... A blow job, is it? HAHA. Well... It's..."

Otou-san's face was red.

"It's...It's a type of job Hana… The kind that's done… uhh… a gift by mommy for daddy." "YOH!!!"

Okaa-san's face was even redder.

"G-Gomen. I meant, you're supposed to know this _only _when you become a daddy too."

He was carried to where okaa-san sat.

"But Horo-Horo-baka knows about it. He says it's like sucking milk--"

"--Again... only when you become an adult," Yoh grinned. "Okay?"

"I… guess." His otou-san laughs, his okaa-san breathes a sigh of relief.

It's always like this whenever he asks; they drop everything, for him... makes him feel special.

But then he remembers, "Otou-san, okaa-san why don't you invite me in your nightly prayers?"

"Prayers?"

"You know, every night. Okaa-san calls god..."

"_Oh god. Oh god. Yoh I'm coming!_"

"…And then Otou-san also says that he's coming…"

_"Ugh. F*ck it feels good. Anna...Anna…"_

"Then you both go quiet, so I'm thinking you really did go to God – to heaven…"

"That's…"

"--Hana… that's strictly a mommy-daddy thing." Anna intervened. "So you must wait patiently until you grow up."

"Still? Bummer. And I wanted to ask if I could come."

A pause.

"So………your okaa-san is _that _loud huh?" Yoh asked, _proudly_, before her foot found his face.


	4. Uncle's Enlightenment

**Words: 500**

"Hullo Ren." Yoh droned as soon as he noticed the Chinese shaman.

Ren immediately hit Yoh's head. "Be more happy that I came, idiot!" he implored, settling himself down beside Yoh.

A few days ago, Yoh left a cryptic message, mumbling about marital problems... something he couldn't talk to anyone else about.

_"Ren...well, Anna and I... we haven't... you see... I think I won't last... I'm troubled... really...anyway, how's Jeanne and Men? Hope to hear from you soon. Bye."_

To say that Ren was pissed, is an understatement.

"You left me an idiotic message that no one in the right mind would understand!" Ren barked. "Spill it out or I'll spill your guts" and he unsheathed his sword just to emphasize the point.

Sighing, Yoh simply stared at Ren. "You and Jeanne... when was the last time--"

Then, on the second floor, Anna opened a window from their room.

Unwittingly, Yoh sighed again.

Ren's patience was now stretched to the limit. "JUST SPIT THE CRAP OUT!" Then he saw the look of longing in Yoh's eyes, staring after Anna.

Really, he should be more understanding.

Ren placed his hands over his temples. "Ugh. When's the last time we what?--" he asked, more calmly.

"..."

"Fought?! Traveled?! Trained?! _Bonded?!_--"

"Made love?" Yoh asked bluntly.

"..."

"Had sex" Yoh clarified.

Ren blushed............._hard_

"I refuse to talk about my sex life."

Yoh's eyebrows rose to a considerable degree, understanding dawning on his face. "Uwwaaaa....You did it... _recently_?"

"Shut up." He blushed even more.

"I'm jealous!" Yoh groaned. "It's been almost a _month_! It's torture."

Ren's nostrils flared in anger. "SEX?! YOU MADE ME TRAVEL TO ANOTHER COUNTRY TO TALK ABOUT YOUR SEX PROBLEMS?"

Yoh sweated "Umm..Ano...hehe" and he scratched his head.

"You see... Hana heard Anna... one night...uhh... a few times... now she's... she doesn't want... she's embar..._pissed_... "

_Speaking idiotically again._ This time though, Ren _did _understand.

After all, Men suddenly knocked on their chamber doors one night; declared in a haughty voice, "Mother, you're too loud."

Needless to say, Jeanne put on her chastity belt again... for half a year... until Ren found a solution.

"Idiot. _I'll _talk to him..."

~o~

"Hana's asleep?" Anna asked, stepping out of the bath.

Wet hair. Alluring smell. Tantalizing Eyes.

_God-be-damned, incredibly sexy._

_... and she wasn't even trying._

"Mm." said Yoh as he slowly approached her.

Smiling, he slid his arms around her waist and proceeded to ravish her.

"Wait," she reprimanded, not knowing that Yoh already made precautions.

"It's okay... he won't hear..." he said in between kisses.

"...?"

~o~

But Hana lay awake that night, eyes bloodshot, Soul Bob's music loudly pumping in his ears.

_"Hey kid, want to know what your parents do at night?"_

_"They train...exercise...pray. That's what they say."_

_"Tch. That's just a codename..." Ren smirked. "Boy... Let me tell you about the birds and the bees..."_

_And he proceeded to describe it in such a __graphic__ way that no 6-yr old would ever survive from._


	5. Missing Mom

**Words: 600**

'Twas a normal day, when Yoh first discovered, just how truly attached Hana was to Anna.

"Can we go _now?_"

Yoh chuckled. "For the _fifth_ time, not yet. Otou-san needs to complete her meal." Chopping sounds continued.

The boy sighed and fiddled with his jumpers. She always fixed it whenever it was slightly disarrayed.

"It's...not the same without okaa-san..." he blushed...

...and suddenly kicked Yoh on the knee.

Yoh swore he heard a bone crack somewhere. "...There's... no need to be ashamed..."

Hana readied himself for another kick when his father turned to him, and said so while smiling... "I understand the feeling after all..." Yoh confessed gently.

"..."

_They missed her. _

It was that simple.

~0~

"Okaa-san! Guess what we did in school today?!" he asked excitedly, bounding towards her hospital bed.

"Slow down Hana," she reprimanded.

Really, she was happy to see them too.

With a bright smile he said "Nothing! Teacher just gave us homework!!!"

Anna crinkled her nose. "You're becoming a lazy bum like your father."

Hana laughed loudly. "Teacher said we should bring mommies and daddies to school next week... You have to get better! Or else--"

_Else what? _Anna stiffened. _Tamao will be her replacement?_

Yoh also moved to hold Anna's hand.

Hana grabbed an apple, took a huge bite, choked.

Chomping, not looking at either of them, and with his nose high in the air he finished "...else i won't get to show off _my _mommy."

"..."

Hana peeked to check what her reaction was and immediately blushed at that rare, breath-taking smile.

His jaw dropped considerably. "I...I want no one else..."

And he threw himself so adorably on Anna's outstretched arms.

~0~

On their way home, Yoh noted that Hana had been rather quiet.

He wondered if the boy hated him for that innocent _'Your eyes are wet Hana' _comment, at which Hana stuck out his tongue and buried himself in Anna's hair.

In truth however, Hana was in deep thought.

Eventually, he breaks the silence. "Otou-san..."

"Hmm?"

He pouted his lips, struggling to find the right words. "Okaa-san is... Okaa-_chan_..."

"...Yes Hana?"

Hana sighed before stating clearly, "She's really pretty when she smiles."

Yoh looked at his son, bemused. And it took him quite a while before saying anything.

As Hana looked up, Yoh only gave him a wink, as if to say 'he already knew_ that.'_

Hana smiled back.

Grinning, Yoh pressed his index finger to his lips, a sign that it was _their_ secret.

"Don't tell anyone else. Especially _don't remind_ your Uncle Hao."

"Huh? Why so?" Hana asked, confused.

"Well... I don't wanna have competition... too troublesome really...ehehehe"

Hana stared at his father. "Competition." He blinked.

"Otou-san doesn't have to worry. Okaa-san keeps on saying she loves you... always always, she says so... the man I love is your father, Yoh."

"..."

At that instant, Yoh suddenly stopped walking.

Looking up at the stars, he smiled... a heart-felt smile that was rarely seen on his carefree face.

"Hey Hana... wanna sleep over at the hospital tonight? I'm sure she wouldn't mind the company."

Brown eyes met those onyx ones, as the small hand reached to take hold of the larger.

Nodding as a way of response, they both treaded down the path where they came from, toward the hospital, toward the woman they both loved.

"Course, okaa-chan loves _me_ best_._"Hana added.

Because truthfully, even if she didn't speak the softest language...

...she meant the world to them.

And when they saw her again that night she barked "Why are you here!?" but she smiled slightly nonetheless.


	6. Death's Door

**Words: 700**

Death.

_At one point or another, its inevitability has to be acknowledged._

A samurai was sitting solemnly on the roof... eyes never leaving the setting sun.

A woman sat in the living room as though unfazed, but depression visibly clouded her mind.

A child knelt beside her, vehemently trying to control his sobs.

And one man, unusually still, resolved himself to calmly open the door and enter Yoh's room wordlessly.

No one bothered to question why Yoh seemed so happy... why he seemed to be rejoicing his own death.

The man sees his gentle smile, that oh so familiar goofy look on his face.

_Immediately he thinks 'It hurts,' knowing it's the last time that smile will ever be seen..._

Yoh chuckles, "Really. You should be happy for me, all of you."

He said this so calmly, barely a whisper, but it echoed in the stillness of the room.

"No need to look like that." Yoh adds gently. "Come."

The man clenches his fist as he slowly approaches and kneels beside Yoh.

He opens his mouth to say anything... his gratitude, love, apologies, _everything_...

He doesn't know where... _how_ to start.

"I told Anna..." Yoh begins for him, "that I'll leave our family in her care."

Hearing him talk was painful too, like every word he uttered pulled him further and further away.

"She reminds me of many things." Yoh wheezed slowly. "Even more, why I welcome death like an old friend..." he explains gently.

A single teardrop trickled down the man's face.

Yoh slowly turns his head to the side to properly face him.

"Hana," Yoh says.

The mass of blonde hair finally rose to reveal dark and sullen eyes.

"O-Otou-san..." he starts.

"She reminds me of your mother."

"..."

"I miss Anna..." he confesses to his son, and to no one else.

For the briefest of seconds Hana's lips quivered, before he acknowledged this with a curt nod. "...I know."

Yoh breathes out. "Also, I'm... so proud of you, Hana" he smiles greatly "...of who you have become."

At this, Hana's tears flowed like waterfall.

_When was the last time he cried?_

Ah, yes, that moment his mom told him (_for the last time_) that she loves him. Then her light disappeared from this world too.

This moment is just as awkward... as truthful... and heart-felt.

_I'm proud of you. I love you so. _

Four simple words.

And yet it held all the meaning in the world.

Yoh closed his eyes.

_Finally._

The last words have been said, although 'goodbye' was never uttered.

He breathed his last breath, a smile etched on his face.

For a person who has lived his entire life earnestly, fully and contentedly...

_This is a perfect way to die_, he says to himself.

_Death..._

_...my next great adventure. _

~o~

_Yoh soon finds himself walking in a field of flowers, orbs glistening as they floated by._

_He sees his family. _

_He waves enthusiastically._

_And he sees his friends. _

_He laughs out loud. _

_Then, he sees her._

_He smiles. _

_She doesn't move._

_He approaches her. _

_She flicks his forehead. _

_"Why are you so happy, idiot?"_

~o~

Hana places a cover over his father's body, smiling, amidst his tear-filled eyes.

He knew, somewhere in the spirit world, his father must have that stupid happy grin on his face, and his mother, with that "seemingly" i-am-irritated-face.

Somewhere, for sure, they were wrapped in a tight embrace.

~o~

_"Because I'm dead," he declares "and I'm here with you."_

_Death. _

_For the living, it seems as if it has to be grieved._

_For the parted, it's more likely, something to rejoice about._

_"Did you cheat on me while you were there?"_

_"'Course not! I've been too busy researching... Spirits... can still feel sexual sensations! No wonder Faust wants to be with Eliza!"_

_Her Legendary Left almost collides with his face, but she stops midair at that intense, indescribable expression in his eyes. _

_"Kidding." His smile was just as complicated. _

_"It's been too long, Anna" relaxing his face at the softness of her palm._

_He kisses her fingers, her hands, her forehead._

_His mouth closes upon hers. _

_Death. _

_It's not so much a farewell._

_Rather, more likely, it's a reunion. _


	7. That Kiss

**Words: 100**

_Because I realized that I can write a 100-word story, and that I haven't given you guys anything for Christmas._

_I bring you... That Kiss. _

_

* * *

_

* * *

"A kiss?"

Yoh nodded. "It's tradition, kissing under the mistletoe."

T'was Christmas and Anna was drunk…

…There was no better time to pray for a miracle.

Anna pouted.

"Once is enough," he whispered reassuringly.

".……Can... can I give it in... whatever manner?"

There were different manners?

Ah, probably learned it from her soaps…

Crap.

That's sexy.

"W-Well, whatever manner for you is best, Anna."

"_Any_ manner at all?"

"Yeah." He gulped. "Please."

A seductive smile…

Yoh holds his breath.

Anna passionately kisses her palm.

Wait.

What?

The kissed palm collides with his cheekbone.

_Hard._

"Wasn't _that_ drunk, idiot. Merry Christmas."

* * *

HIATUS: Back in March with longer stories + replies to messages from friends O_O


	8. Hana's First

**Author's Trivia**:

[1] Chap 6 was supposed to be titled "Daddy's Death" or "Father's Farewell" after Missing Mom... but I wanted to slightly confuse the readers who the 'man' was (it was Hana). Using a Dad/Father in the title would immediately link to Hana. I wanted readers to ask, "Could the "man" be Hao? Could Yoh be leaving his family to Hao? After all, there was that child beside the woman... that _could_ be Hana and the woman was called Anna... _*wails*_ nobody said "I was surprised that it was Hana!" Epic fail lescribble-san. Epic fail.

[2] A **WOJAPE**, is a Plains Indian pudding of mashed, cooked berries (Wikipedia); it is a Native American cuisine.

**Words: 800**

Hana stared at her as he bit on his morning toast.

Her eyebrows were furrowed in extreme concentration, doing her last minute gift-wrapping.

She was cute- uhh, looked like the pained ass of a dog- that way.

"Is that for mom?" he suddenly asks her, "What did you get her?"

Anna III merely looked at her fiance.

"She's picky with gifts, so…"

She cocked her brow, "Is that all?" and then returned her attention to the gift.

"Tch." Her air of subtle arrogance was really pissing him off. "What do you mean 'is that all'? If mom-"

"-Why would I fail?" She cut him through. "I am her _best student_ after all."

His eye made an involuntary twitch. "Whatever." He stood up, dusted his pants and prepared to leave.

_She doesn't fight fair_, he thought_… being so cute while being so damn irritating._

As he headed out the doorway, she called out. "I'm really interested in what I'm getting." She taunted. "Like I said before, if I like it, I might let you kiss me."

Hana blushed. "L-Like I wanna do that!" and he stomped toward the onsen.

Seriously.

He won against her on their first battle, not because he wanted to marry her,

- he just hated losing.

He bought that talisman for her birthday, not because he caught her giving it a look of longing,

- he just feared her Demon Slap.

And he spent days perfecting the Wojape (her favorite and sorely missed dish from the Patch tribe), not because he wanted her kiss,

- he just... well... he's still looking for an excuse.

Rubbing his head vigorously, he lowered himself into the warm water.

"Ah crap. What if she really does kiss me?" he says aloud.

"Who's kissing you?"

"GAH!" Hana choked out a few water droplets as he saw the nonchalant expression of his father.

"O-Otou-san! Don't startle other people like that!"

"Hana-chan, you just didn't notice me when you entered the bath." Yoh smiled and covered his eyes with a warm towel. "First kiss huh?"

Hana sank once more into the water, blushing.

This was weird… talking about kissing girls with your powerful shamanic dad.

Yoh smiled. "So you're in that stage already."

He peeked at his son's confused face.

"The first time your Okaa-san and I kissed also happened on Christmas Eve."

_~Flashback~_

_"What is that?" Anna asked._

_"A mistletoe, from Lyserg."_

_"I know what it is. I meant, what is that doing there?"_

_"What's wrong with it?"_

_"The idiotic tradition of kissing when two people are under it."_

_"Oh." Yoh smiles, turning back to the small piece of plant as he arranges it. "Afraid are we, Anna?"_

_Anna raised her brow "Of kissing? I am an Asakura bride. I do not get afraid."_

_"Ok then." Yoh sat under it and looked at her expectantly, patting the seat beside him. _

_She crossed her arms and huffed. "Don't think I don't see what you're doing."_

_Yoh smiled innocently. "What am I doing?"_

_"Flirting so pathetically just to get a kiss," Ren said as he passed along the corridor._

_Yoh blushed a deeper shade of red._

_Ignoring the passerby and concealing her further annoyance she stomped her foot. _

_"Stop pretending Yoh. I said it's idiotic... so I'm not standing under that just to prove my point."_

_"I see." Yoh looked slightly dejected. _

_"But… I also said I was unafraid of kissing."_

_He smiled, finally understanding. _

_"Well, it is Christmas…" he said, "…and you haven't given me any present yet," giving her "legitimate" reasons why it's alright to kiss._

_Anna merely stared back._

_So Yoh stood up and Anna jerked him closer, away from the mistletoe, pressing her lips to his. _

_"Merry Christmas."_

_~End of Flashback~_

Adults, Hana thought, resort to all sorts of pretensions just to hide their embarrassment.

As for him, he really didn't have to pretend.

You see, he doesn't want to kiss her anyway.

But at midnight, when he sat down beside her on the porch and discreetly handed her the pudding, he wondered why his heart beat furiously fast when she smiled and said she liked it.

Hana peeked at their living room, just enough to see everyone else drunk and rolling on the floor with laughter.

He leaned over and closed his mouth upon hers.

He didn't want to kiss her.

No way. He just…

…wanted to get his present in return.

Moments later, he would find that he has a brand new handout filled with gruesome training, courtesy of his fiancé.

Yeah. He definitely worked hard on that pudding to get this.

He watched Anna III walk over to his parents, giving them her gifts.

He secretly smiled as he saw a hint of blush on her cheeks.

Absentmindedly, Hana prodded his lips.

Hers were so soft.


	9. French Muse

**Author's Note: **

[1] Inspired by **Chapter 291, Pages 16-17**; because even though Yoh made that comment about Ren, I smiled cause I knew he meant those words for himself too. This is a story of how Ren realized he found his own muse, just as Yoh had in the past, - a story about Ren, but also a story about Yoh.

[2] This, I dedicate to **Angela Nguyen****,** :) because you've made me love Ren-Jeanne even more. [How I wished they had screen time in the manga.]

**Words: 1000**

"I'm going to France."

The declaration was so sudden and completely out of nowhere, that to the untrained ear, it seems like a passing comment.

But Yoh knew this wasn't the case; Ren rarely voiced anything pointless.

"France?" Yoh replied, confused.

Ren pretended not to have heard him, and was focused completely at what was flashed on screen.

Or so it seemed.

"What's in France?" Yoh shouldered on.

"The… Eiffel Tower." Ren said nonchalantly.

The pause was not unnoticed.

Suspicious.

"…a tower…"

" - Yeah. There's also this famous museum…"

"I see." Yoh didn't, really. Ren doesn't strike him as the type to idly tour museums or towers. "Sightseeing?"

"It could be fun." Ren mused in an unusually high-pitched voice. "Food, different culture…"

"Maybe you could visit Marco," Yoh offered.

"ABSOLUTELY NOT! Why the hell would I want to see ugly him!"

"So you can ask where Jeanne is."

Ren opened his mouth to protest, but found himself closing it inch by inch. "I don't need to ask four-eyes for that," he muttered.

Yoh's eyebrows rose to a considerable degree. Ren's ears were getting redder by the minute.

"Shut up" Ren barked.

"I didn't say anything!"

"Your eyes say everything!"

Yoh chuckled. "Ah sorry." Then he flashed Ren a smile to show that he wasn't sorry at all.

"Bastard!"

Then they proceeded to brawl on the floor, the way little boys would, before Anna stepped in to slap them both for disrupting her drama marathon.

-O-

Ren eventually made it to France.

He visited some old palaces, took pictures, bought souvenirs, and met with _her_ in Champs Elysees.

Marco wasn't far behind.

Needless to say, the 'date' was a disaster.

They walked two feet away from each other, or at least Ren and Jeanne did.

Marco walked so close to Ren as he hissed profanities and curses in the boy's ears, constantly telling him that he was unworthy of the Holy Maiden's affection.

Bason floated nearby too.

When Ren's spiky hair finally grew high enough to pierce the roof of a pastry shop, Jeanne cleared her throat.

"Marco, perhaps you'd like to frolic around with Shamash," came her gentle voice.

"Frolic?"

"Bason, get to know some… French spirits," came Ren's brusque order.

"M-Master?"

And before they knew it, Ren and Jeanne curtly turned and walked in an opposite direction.

"…"

The second half of the date was more peaceful. The distance between them was only half a foot.

She'd tell him the good things about France.

He'd tell her it was much better in China.

They would also stop by random torture-device selling stores.

As she picks up a shoe with rugged spikes underneath, he tells her "You're a weird woman."

_I think you're cute, interesting, funny to look at… _ all the words he never said but she understood anyway.

Jeanne merely smiled. "Don't worry. I think you're weird too."

Then they both go quiet as they noticed the sun slowly descending into darkness.

The sky was a hazy orange, fiery and turbulent - exactly like the way he feels right now.

He became suddenly aware of his fingers, as they brushed upon something soft. He carefully moved his eyes to ascertain what it was, and he paused, realizing that his fingers lay atop her own.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" She muses, breaking his silent reverie.

"The sunsets in China are even better."

Jeanne turned to look at him, glancing briefly at their innocently tangled hands, then looked him in the eye. "I've been thinking…"

Ren cocked his brown to show he was listening.

"I'd like to see China someday," she said.

She inclined her head ever so slightly, so her soft fringes seemed aglow with the sunset.

Immediately, Ren thinks that he is in danger.

Even just her eyes, her blood red eyes, leave him speechless, transfixed and holding his breath.

He wondered if there would ever come a time when he wouldn't be so weak against her.

So he simply nodded, unable to find his voice. She turned to watch the sunset once more.

Somehow, they both deemed it unnecessary to move their fingers away, or move even closer for that matter.

This was as close as their comforts would allow.

But for now, it was enough.

-O-

"Ren!" Yoh greeted him with a goofy grin as he stepped inside the inn. "How was France?" Yoh asked. '_How was Jeanne?' _was what he meant to say.

Anna didn't fail to miss the implication, and she looked at Ren.

"Fine."

Anna returned to her soaps. Yoh laughed. "That's good to hear."

"Oi Ren! Where are our presents?" Horo-Horo said, as he appeared in a bathrobe.

"I wouldn't give you one if you begged!"

The Ainu's nose flared. "You arrogant brat-" Then he jumped him, just as Ren grabbed his spear.

**"QUIET!"** Anna seized them both and slapped them fiercely, so that they were both flung in opposite directions. Horo-Horo's face caused a crack in the wall, Ren's pointed hair did the same.

Anna merely sighed. "Yoh."

"Nngg."

"Fix the walls," she ordered.

"W-Why me?"

Anna gave him a cold glare that said _Why not? I'll punish you if you disobey._

Yoh gulped, by way of response.

Satisfied, she coolly exited the living room.

As Ren surveyed the scene he noted that Horo-Horo was still out cold and Yoh was crying. "This is what awaits me?"

Yoh immediately stopped, and grinned. "There are good parts." _I can think of a million reasons… _

"Like what?"

Yoh stood up, dusted his pants and moved towards Ren. "That one, you'll have to figure out on your own." He tugged Ren's foot to detach his hair from the wall.

"You piss me off…" Ren said "…acting like an expert on love."

"Expert?" Yoh grinned. "Course not." Then he moved next to where Horo-Horo was slumped. "I just like being with Anna."

Then he gave Ren a complicated smile.

_Because I love her._

_That's all there is to it. _

_You'll understand soon enough, Ren._


End file.
